Alphabet becomes the most valuable traded US company

lphabet Inc has surpassed Apple Inc as the most valuable company in the United States, knocking the iPhone maker from the top spot that it has held for the better part of four years.The change may signal the passing of the technology baton to Alphabet – formerly known as Google – from Apple, which surged past Microsoft Corp in market value in 2010. Microsoft in turn eclipsed International Business Machines Corp two decades ago.
It is not without piquancy for Apple and Alphabet, which worked hand-in-hand to develop mobile computing, but fell out bitterly after Google launched its own Android mobile operating system in 2008. Alphabet’s move into the top spot makes it the 12th company to be recognized as the largest publicly traded U.S. name since 1928, according to S&P Dow Jones Indices. Past No. 1 names include General Electric, General Motors and IBM.